How to Not Get Fatter During The Holidays

   My friend Josh has motivated me in more ways than he can ever imagine. First of all, he motivated me to consider running, a sport I thought ill of.  What is the point of running if you are not A) being chased or B) playing a sport? But, after going to a couple of races to support him and his obsession, I caught the bug too. He has also lost 185 pounds in the last 3 years. He has taught me to set small goals to reach one large goal to change and improve your life. To read more about him, visit his blog at http://www.phatjosh.com. It is amazing.
   He posted a list of 11 ideas to keep you on your weight loss journey. I liked it so much, I thought I would share some of his ideas here, with my own insights of course. I decided to start losing weight in December rather than January like most people simply because I couldn't stand one more day of not doing something right in my life. Has it been easy with holiday treats hanging around? No. Is my 9 pound weight loss worth it? Yes. So here is some things Josh and I have figured out to help us stay on the correct path this holiday season.

• Stick to a regular workout schedule. If the weather outside is frightful, run on the treadmill, an indoor track, or with a workout video. You might find out you like kickboxing, Tae Bo, or yoga. Who knew?
• Avoid overeating at holiday parties by eating a small meal before.
• Designate appropriate times and places to eat that ONE thing you wait for every year to eat. Make sure to ENJOY it as well. 
• Don't eat it unless you really want it and set appropriate limits. One cookie is fine, a whole batch, not so much... 
• If you need a holiday sugar rush ... grab a candy cane! They have only 45 calories and 8 grams of sugar! 
• Snacks should consist of about 15-20 grams of carbohydrates to about 9-10 grams of fat per serving. An apple and a Tbls. of peanut butter or 3 cups of air popped popcorn with a half serving of chocolate chips to fulfill that chocolate serving are both appropriate snacks.  
• Grab water instead of sodas and juices with your meals. This includes diet soda. Need extra something in the water? Add a squeeze of a citrus fruit for a yummy treat. 
• Set yourself a nutrition goal once a week to improve your health. Last week's goal for me was to get 8 servings+ of fruits and veggies a day. This week is that AND 9 glasses of water or green tea a day.
• If you overeat one day, move on. It doesn't mean your holiday diet is broke. That is like saying my bedroom is a mess, I should screw up the whole house! Forgive the small mess and focus on doing more good things. 
• Instead of aiming to be perfect, aim for a more realistic 80/20 diet. That means one "treat" meal a week and one treat a week. Looking forward to that one splurge is enough to help you actually ENJOY the splurge! I am using www.livestrong.com/myplate to track my food and make sure I am staying in my calorie goals. You can too!
• As Josh would say, RUN. Especially run during the Run Resolution (January 1) and New Years Resolution Half Marathon (January 5). Those two runs will hide many of your holidays sins. Plus, you get a carb load before hand! If you are not into running, set yourself another goal on those two days. Start walking now and walk one more mile than you ever have on January 1st and walk 2 more miles on January 5th. Small feats like these add up to large improvements on your health and on your ego!

      This list serves more of a reminder of the things I should be doing, but I hope it helps you too. Remember, small steps can lead to awesome destinations.